This invention lies in the field of the treatment of submicron graphitic fibrils, sometimes called vapor grown carbon fibers. Carbon fibrils are vermicular carbon deposits having diameters less than 1.0μ, preferably less than 0.5μ, and even more preferably less than 0.2μ. They exist in a variety of forms and have been prepared through the catalytic decomposition of various carbon-containing gases at metal surfaces. Such vermicular carbon deposits have been observed almost since the advent of electron microscopy. A good early survey and reference is found in Baker and Harris, Chemistry and Physics of Carbon, Walker and Thrower ed., Vol. 14, 1978, p. 83, hereby incorporated by reference. See also, Rodriguez, N., J. Mater. Research, Vol. 8, p. 3233 (1993), hereby incorporated by reference.
In 1976, Endo et al. (see Obelin, A. and Endo, M., J. of Crystal Growth, Vol. 32 (1976), pp. 335–349, elucidated the basic mechanism by which such carbon fibrils grow. There were seen to originate from a metal catalyst particle which, in the presence of a hydrocarbon containing gas, becomes supersaturated in carbon. A cylindrical ordered graphitic core is extruded which immediately, according to Endo et al., becomes coated with an outer layer of pyrolytically deposited graphite. These fibrils with a pyrolytic overcoat typically have diameters in excess of 0.1μ, more typically 0.2 to 0.5μ.
In 1984, Tennent, U.S. Pat. No. 4,663,230, succeeded in growing cylindrical ordered graphite cores, uncontaminated with pyrolytic carbon. Thus, the Tennent invention provided access to smaller diameter fibrils, typically 35 to 700 Å (0.0035 to 0.070μ) and to an ordered, “as grown” graphitic surface. Fibrillar carbons of less perfect structure, but also without a pyrolytic carbon outer layer have also been grown. These carbon fibrils are free of a continuous thermal carbon overcoat, i.e., pyrolytically deposited carbon resulting from thermal cracking of the gas feed used to prepare them, and have multiple graphitic outer layers that are substantially parallel to the fibril axis. As such they may be characterized as having their c-axes, the axes which are perpendicular to the tangents of the curved layers of graphite, substantially perpendicular to their cylindrical axes. They generally have diameters no greater than 0.1μ and length to diameter ratios of at least 5.
The fibrils (including without limitation to buckytubes and nanofibers), treated in this application are distinguishable from continuous carbon fibers commercially available as reinforcement materials. In contrast to carbon fibrils, which have desirably large but unavoidably finite aspect ratios, continuous carbon fibers have aspect ratios (L/D) of at least 104 and often 106 or more. The diameter of continuous fibers is also far larger than that of fibrils, being always >1.0μ and typically from 5 to 7μ.
Tennent, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,171,560, describes carbon fibrils free of thermal overcoat and having graphitic layers substantially parallel to the fibril axes such that the projection of said layers on said fibril axes extends for a distance of at least two fibril diameters. Typically, such fibrils are substantially cylindrical, graphitic nanotubes of substantially constant diameter and comprise cylindrical graphitic sheets whose c-axes are substantially perpendicular to their cylindrical axis. They are substantially free of pyrolytically deposited carbon, and have a diameter less than 0.1μ and a length to diameter ratio of greater than 5.
Carbon nanotubes of a morphology similar to the catalytically grown fibrils described above have been grown in a high temperature carbon arc (Iijima, Nature 354 56 1991). It is now generally accepted (Weaver, Science 265 1994) that these arc-grown nanofibers have the same morphology as the earlier catalytically grown fibrils of Tennent. Arc grown carbon nanofibers are also useful in the invention.
Moy et al., U.S. application Ser. No. 07/887,307 filed May 22, 1992, hereby incorporated by reference, describes fibrils prepared as aggregates having various macroscopic morphologies (as determined by scanning electron microscopy) in which they are randomly entangled with each other to form entangled balls of fibrils resembling bird nests (“BN”); or as aggregates consisting of bundles of straight to slightly bent or kinked carbon fibrils having substantially the same relative orientation, and having the appearance of combed yarn (“CY”) e.g., the longitudinal axis of each fibril (despite individual bends or kinks) extends in the same direction as that of the surrounding fibrils in the bundles; or as aggregates consisting of bundles of straight to slightly bent or kinked carbon fibrils having a variety of relative orientation, and having the appearance of cotton candy (“CC”); or, as, aggregates consisting of straight to slightly bent or kinked fibrils which are loosely entangled with each other to form an “open net” (“ON”) structure. In open net structures the degree of fibril entanglement is greater than observed in the combed yarn aggregates (in which the individual fibrils have substantially the same relative orientation) but less than that of bird nests. CY and ON aggregates are more readily dispersed than BN making them useful in composite fabrication where uniform properties throughout the structure are desired.
When the projection of the graphitic layers on the fibril axis extends for a distance of less than two fibril diameters, the carbon planes of the graphitic nanofiber, in cross section, take on a herring bone appearance. These are termed fishbone (“FB”) fibrils. Geus, U.S. Pat. No. 4,855,091, provides a procedure for preparation of fishbone fibrils substantially free of a pyrolytic overcoat. These fibrils are also useful in the practice of the invention.
Further details regarding the formation of carbon fibril aggregates may be found in the disclosure of Snyder et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 149,573, filed Jan. 28, 1988, and PCT Application No. US89/00322, filed Jan. 28, 1989 (“Carbon Fibrils”) WO 89/07163, and Moy et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 413,837 filed Sep. 28, 1989 and PCT Application No. US90/05498, filed Sep. 27, 1990 (“Fibril Aggregates and Method of Making Same”) WO 91/05089, all of which are assigned to the same assignee as the reference invention.
Pending provisional application Ser. No. 60/020,804 (“'804”), here incorporated by reference, describes rigid porous carbon structures of fibrils or fibril aggregates having highly accessible surface area substantially free of micropores. '804 relates to increasing the mechanical integrity and/or rigidity of porous structures comprising intertwined carbon fibrils. Structures made according to '304 have higher crush strengths than conventional fibril structures. '304 provides a method of improving the rigidity of the carbon structures by causing the fibrils to form bonds or become glued with other fibrils at fibril intersections. The bonding can be induced by chemical modification of the surface of the fibrils to promote bonding, by adding “gluing” agents and/or by pyrolyzing the fibrils to cause fusion or bonding at the interconnect points.
As mentioned above, the fibrils can be in discrete form or aggregated. The former results in the exhibition of fairly uniform properties. The latter results in a macrostructure comprising component fibril particle aggregates bonded together and a microstructure of intertwined fibrils.
Pending application Ser. No. 08/057,328, here incorporated by reference, describes a composition of matter consisting essentially of a three-dimensional, macroscopic assemblage of a multiplicity of randomly oriented carbon fibrils, said fibrils being substantially cylindrical with a substantially constant diameter, having c-axes substantially perpendicular to their cylindrical axis, being substantially free of pyrolytically deposited carbon and having a diameter between about 3.5 and 70 nanometers, said assemblage having a bulk density of from 0.001 to 0.50 gm/cc. Preferably the assemblage has relatively or substantially uniform physical properties along at least one dimensional axis and desirably have relatively or substantially uniform physical properties in one or more planes within the assemblage, i.e. they have isotropic physical properties in that plane. The entire assemblage may also be relatively or substantially isotropic with respect to one or more of its physical properties.
McCarthy et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 351,967 filed May 15, 1989, hereby incorporated by reference, describes processes for oxidizing the surface of carbon fibrils that include contacting the fibrils with an oxidizing agent that includes sulfuric acid (H2SO4) and potassium chlorate (KClO3) under reaction conditions (e.g., time, temperature, and pressure) sufficient to oxidize the surface of the fibril. The fibrils oxidized according to the processes of McCarthy, et al. are non-uniformly oxidized, that is, the carbon atoms are substituted with a mixture of carboxyl, aldehyde, ketone, phenolic and other carbonyl groups. McCarthy and Bening (Polymer Preprints ACS Div. of Polymer Chem. 30 (1)420(1990)).
Fibrils have also been oxidized non-uniformly by treatment with nitric acid. International Application PCT/US94/10168, hereby incorporated by reference, discloses the formation of oxidized fibrils containing a mixture of functional groups. Hoogenvaad, M. S., et al. (“Metal Catalysts supported on a Novel Carbon Support”, Presented at Sixth International Conference on Scientific Basis for the Preparation of Heterogeneous Catalysts, Brussels, Belgium, Sep. 1994), hereby incorporated by reference, also found it beneficial in the preparation of fibril-supported precious metals to first oxidize the fibril surface with nitric acid. Such pretreatment with acid is a standard step in the preparation of carbon-supported noble metal catalysts, where, given the usual sources of such carbon, it serves as much to clean the surface of undesirable materials as to functionalize it.
While many uses have been found for carbon fibrils and aggregates of carbon fibrils, including non-functionalized and functionalized fibrils as described in the patents and patent applications referred to above, there is still a need for technology enabling convenient and effective functionalization or other alteration of carbon fibril surfaces, and for a fibril with a surface so treated.